Rise from the Ashes
by IfICannotMoveHeaven
Summary: The infamous night of Don Juan Triumphant has arrived, the events unfolding just as we know them to. But the next day, Erik hears crying coming from what he thought was the empty theater. And when he finds a little boy crying over the body of his injured sister, he has to make a choice. To remain the feared Phantom, or to begin again.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The all-encompassing sound of the Overture's first notes swelled only moments after the lights in the theater had gone down. The audience had just hushed into silence, only leaving a second of stillness before the theater became alive with music. Instantly, every one of the hundreds of people sitting in the velvet red seats facing the stage were drawn into the world of the opera already.

The young family sitting in floor seats a couple dozen rows from the front were no exception. And as the show, _Don Juan Triumphant_ , began, the story unfolding as the minutes passed, the four became more engrossed in the world presented on the stage.

For three of them, this opera house was no stranger. The parents, Peter and Margot, were fairly significant benefactors of the Opera Populaire, and attended each new show put on there. It was no surprise that the couple, who seemingly lived for the theater, made sure that their children were immersed in it as well. The tradition started when their oldest child, Oliver, turned five years old and was taken to his first show. From then on, he attended a performance with his parents every year. The same went for their daughter, Marie Anelle, when she was of age. It was something that they looked forward to every year, counting down the days months in advance.

By the time the youngest child, Benjamin, was three years old, Oliver had already moved out of the family's home and into one of his own, just across town from where he grew up. But still, for the following two years, he attended an opera yearly with his parents and sister.

This year, however, he wasn't able to attend. He was on holiday with his new fiancee and wouldn't be returning for another two weeks. It was a shame that he missed this one, since it was Benjamin's very first time accompanying his parents to a show, having turned five a month earlier.

As the show went on, Marie Anelle was just as entranced as everyone else in the audience seemed to be. This show was dazzling, maybe even the best one yet. There was a darkness to it that was rarely seen at the Populaire. _Don Juan_ was a romance, of sorts, but the evil that loomed over it was what really came forward.

She might have been the most excited about this show than any other before; she had heard all the gossip about the female lead, Christine Daae, for months. And now, here she was, in the flesh, only a few hundred feet in front of her, giving one of the best performances Anelle had ever seen.

Breaking out of the spell she had been put in by the music for a moment, she glanced down at the little boy sitting next to her. Her brother was dressed up for the momentous occasion of his first show at the Populaire, though his fancy clothes looked a bit comical on such a small child. Ben was squirming in his seat, clearly not used to sitting still for so long. Anelle had to give him credit; he was such an energetic, impulsive child, it was a wonder he had managed this long. She couldn't help smiling slightly at the sight of her rambunctious brother trying so hard to be grown up.

Looking over at her parents, it was no surprise to see that their attention was on nothing but the show, hypnotized by the music and plot unfolding in front of them. Their love for performances, in this opera house in particular, was something all of their children had grown up knowing as fact. Every month or so they would embark for the evening to see a new show there, always dressed up and happy. And when the children got to go with them once a year, half of the fun was seeing their parents in such high spirits.

When Anelle looked away from her brother and back to the stage, she couldn't help noticing that something seemed...off. She couldn't be sure what it was, but there was something sinister casting its mood over the stage that hadn't been there before. The most affected by it seemed to be Christine Daae herself, who was going through the current song with such a realistic fear in her face and voice, that Anelle found herself concerned for her. But of course, there was nothing that the actress was actually afraid of. It was just her unspeakable talent showing through, putting out more realism than she was used to seeing in the other actors.

As the song went on, the two leads dancing seductively around the set, entrancing each other and the audience with their bold lyrics, the sense of something wrong didn't fade. Marie Anelle tried her hardest to push it out of her mind, but she couldn't seem to. In fact, the sensation seemed to be building, every passing note letting on more and more emotions that were too real to be staged. At one point, she considered leaning over to her parents, asking if they knew if anything was wrong.

But before she could, Christine Daae ripped the hood off of the actor playing opposite to her. There wasn't time to process the horror of it all. One moment, the blinding spotlights on the stage illuminated the face of the man who had just been singing. But his face was not anything that she could have ever imagined, not even in her nightmares. One half was disfigured to a point that didn't seem possible. And the next moment, there were screams coming from all over. First from the stage, it seemed, but then from the audience as it was realized that this was not a part of the show.

The man grabbed Christine, pulling her off stage in a hurry. Just before they disappeared from sight, a shot rang out from somewhere in one of the boxes, resulting in even more screams of terror.

It was mayhem before Anelle could think her way around what to do. There were people running everywhere, and a mob formed immediately, going every which way to try and locate the man and the lost prima dona. Somewhere in the first minute of chaos, the lights in the front of the stage had been tipped over, most likely by one of the chorus members who were leaping from the stage, trying to find the closest exit. The flames that poured from them began to grow.

Anelle watched as her parents' faces absorbed the disaster in front of them. They stood up, turning out of the rows of seats and into the aisle.

"Quickly!" their father shouted to them over the roar of hundreds of voices and footsteps. He reached out his hands towards their children, but before he could make contact with either of them, both he and his wife were swept away by the crowd, lost in a sea of people as easily as a grain of sand in a wave.

Benjamin was among the screaming people now, crying out for his parents, his whole body shaking with fear and shock. Anelle grabbed his hand, looking for which direction they needed to move in to avoid being trampled by the ceaseless crowd. She scooped him into her arms before managing the escape the row of chairs, melding into the wave of people running down the aisles towards the front.

Just as they approached the exit nearest to the stage, only a few rows away by then, a loud explosion crashed nearby, and the fire from the stage lights began spreading more rapidly, cutting off the exit that they were headed towards. There was another outburst of deafening screams, and a shift in the pulse of the moving crowd.

With Ben in her arms, she didn't have time to turn around and start running quickly enough to keep up with everyone around them. She was knocked to the ground, the mob not moving around her, but over her. Without having to think about it, she threw her body over Benjamin's, doing all she could to shield him from being trampled.

There was no way to know how long she laid there, braced on the ground, not able to move. When the foot of someone running collided violently with her head, she was knocked unconscious.

 **(A/N: Hello! This is my first Phantom fic in a LONG time. My last one went unfinished about four years ago for personal reasons. But after reading through the old chapters, I was reminded of another plot I had in my mind at the time. Though I couldn't write it then, I've decided to give it a try now! Since this is my first time in a long time writing for this fandom, I would really appreciate reviews so I can know what everyone thinks!**

 **The next chapter should be up fairly soon (within the next day or two, I'm guessing) so stay tuned!)**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

There was something about the silence, so eerily dormant, after the noise and commotion of the previous night, that made the world really seem like it was over. But, it was over, at least for him.

The man who laid crumpled on the ground, his body looking almost broken beneath the cape draped over his shoulders, choking on sobs that had wracked his body for hours. He was exhausted, but there was no chance that he would find sleep. Not now. Not now that she was gone.

Even thinking those words were close to impossible for him. For so long, he had held onto the hope that, eventually, she would choose him. And though every day that she wasn't in his arms felt like his heart was being chipped away, there had always been the chance that she would choose him, and that is what had kept him going.

But now, even that was gone. She had chosen that loathsome vicomte, leaving him alone to his own world of pain and misery.

After he had released the pair from his labyrinth, he knew that he would have only minutes before a mob would descend upon his home, looking to take him to whatever punishment they thought was fit for his crimes. Instead of waiting there like a rabbit in a trap, he had escaped into one of his many hidden passages that were scattered throughout the opera house, including in his home. He had left his mask out there for them to find, figuring that it was best to let their own imaginations decide what had happened to him. And as he listened to the discussions of the people above the spot where he hid, he heard them argue briefly about what his fate had been. In the end, they decided on suicide, thinking he would rather die than be caught. Of course, they had no idea that those weren't his only two options.

He also heard a brief mention about what they should do with his lair. It was ultimately decided that they would leave it untouched, not wanting to risk the repercussions of angering an already fearsome ghost. (Those who were of the opinion that the Phantom was a living man instead of a spirit haunting the Populaire now believed that he truly was dead) And, as for the opera house, it would be a wonder if anyone could be found who would want to restore it now that it was in such a destroyed state. There were other theaters, they said, other places that would work just well.

That had been hours ago, though exactly how many he couldn't be sure. He had listened as the fire brigade extinguished the flames that were consuming the Populaire, and the medics that helped bring the injured out of the dangerous building. The dead were still there, the dozens of bodies left until a new brigade came to collect them within the next week.

But what did it matter? What did anything matter, now that his entire world was destroyed? His entire life, everything he had worked for and wanted so badly, now laid in ruin.

What was to become of him? He had no clue. After years of living as the feared Phantom, people practically bowing to his every command, he had no clue how he would survive without it all. Those idiot people who mobbed his home the night before might as well have been right; he might as well have killed himself. He still could. There was no time frame that he had missed. It was the only way to end the torturous pain he was in. His heart was destroyed, and everything else along with it.

There was no way to know how many more hours he laid there, his mind in some kind of haze as he went over what he would do, how he would survive even through the next minute.

And then, out of the deafening silence, came a noise. It was small, quiet enough that it was likely it had been going on for a long time before he noticed it. And when he did, he doubted his hearing. It was...a cry? Yes, it had to be. After listening as closely as he could for a few minutes, he deduced that it was definitely crying.

But that was impossible. He was the only living soul left in the opera house. All of the survivors of the incident had gone, either by themselves or escorted by a medic to help with their injuries. The only one left in the building besides himself were the dead bodies.

And yet, the noise continued. And the longer it did, the harder it became to ignore. It pierced through his ears like pins, grinding against his skull in a horrendous way. It didn't take long before he felt the first glimmer of an emotion besides devastation: annoyance. The….thing, whatever it was, that was making the noise had to be removed. And he was the only one left around that could do it.

He tucked a length of rope into his pocket, just in case, and started making his way towards the main part of the building. He followed the noise through the empty corridors and hallways, not paying too much attention to the minor damage that had taken place there.

Eventually, it became clear that the sound was coming from inside the stage room, where most of the commotion had taken place.

Stepping through one of the doorways to the fantastic hall, he was taken aback. Everything there, from the velvet seats to the raised stage, were completely destroyed. For a moment, he wondered if he was even in the right place. But he had never gotten lost anywhere in the opera house before, so that couldn't be possible.

The air was thick with smoke, making it difficult and uncomfortable to breathe. And adding to the discomfort was the almost intolerable heat that filled the space, the residual effect of the fire that had only been extinguished hours before.

Of course, the carnage of the structure and physical things around him weren't what stood out the most. It was the bodies, dozens of them strewn out around most of the space, lifelessly slumped on the ground. They all had physical wounds, which clearly had been fatal. Terrible burns, opened flesh, even crushed in skulls, were what seemed to be the demise of these unfortunate souls.

The sight of it all was almost enough to make him forget the noise. But, before long, it was there again, echoing eerily throughout the room. It was clear now that it was definitely the sound of crying, and almost certainly that of a small child.

He walked with caution, taking care to step around the bodies, patches of blood, and a few embers that were still glowing with heat. The thick air made it difficult to find the source of the noise by sight, so he relied on his hearing to guide him.

Within a few minutes, he finally came upon the first living person he had seen in hours. Though, he could barely be called a 'person'. Surely, nothing that small could really be one. (Though, admittedly, he hadn't seen a child up close in longer than he could remember, so maybe they were all this small).

The boy was covered in soot, sweat, and tears. There was barely any visible skin on him. But when he looked up at Erik with his giant, tear filled blue eyes, the whole space around him seemed to grow brighter. From just his eyes alone, his expression so clearly showed that he expected that the man was there to rescue him.

He wasn't quite sure what to do. Here was this child, impossibly small and no doubt frightened, who had been mistaken for dead by the medics who came to rescue the living. But he wasn't dead, at least not yet, and Erik was the only one who knew.

After examining the child quickly from a distant, he seemed relatively uninjured, minus a few cuts and bruises. He was maybe around five years old, if his guess was correct. He didn't notice that, since seeing him, the boy's sobbing had quieted to nearly silent tears.

Before he could say a thing, the child's high voice, scratchy from crying and dehydration, spoke up.

"You have to help her," he said in a small, shaking voice. "She's hurt badly. Please, you have to do something." Erik wasn't sure who the child was referring to, thinking that perhaps he had hit his head after all, and was suffering from some temporary delusion. After all, they were the only two living people in the opera house. There was no one left to save.

But the boy was insistent, repeating the plea over and over again. Erik remained silent, but tried to figure out what the boy could possibly mean. After a moment, he realized that there was a small movement coming from next to the boy. It was barely visible, but once he saw it he knew it was real. The girl on the ground next to him wasn't dead, as she appeared. Her chest was still rising and falling shallowly with breath.

Seeing her, his own breath stopped. It couldn't be. It was impossible. But, no. Maybe, just maybe…

Underneath the ash and blood covering her face, the suggestion of pale, smooth skin peaked out. And the wild curls that flowed from her head were almost the same as they had always been….

No. It wasn't her. Of course it wasn't. The soft skin was too pale, even under the dim lighting. And the long hair was too dark, almost black, and only appeared curly because of the blood matted into it. This girl was not his Christine. There was resemblance, but his brain had only played a trick on him. Just a cruel twist of reality to send a new jolt of pain through his chest.

He couldn't figure out how both of them had been left there by the police and medics. Perhaps it was understandable that the girl, who still looked mostly dead, had been overlooked when collecting the living. But the boy was clearly alive, conscious and aware. The only explanation he could think of was that, at the time, he too had been unconscious, and had only just recently woken up.

It was all too much. The desperate tears coming from the boy, the girl's vague resemblance to his lost love, the reality of seeing all the destruction his attempt at winning Christine's heart had caused… He couldn't bear to stay there any longer. He turned away quickly, ready to flee the room and retreat back into the safety of his own private him. But before he could take a full step away, the little boy spoke up again.

"Where are you going?" he asked, his voice shaking even more now, threatening another round of tears. "You can't leave. Please, you have to help us. I-I can't leave her alone here. She's hurt. I don't know where to go." By now, the tears had begun flowing again, causing him to choke over his words.

Erik didn't know what it was that made him turn back around. Perhaps it was the boy's desperate sobs, or the girl's resemblance to Christine, or maybe just a passing moment of insanity. But, whatever the reason, he did.

He knelt down in front of the boy, making himself small enough to look him in the eyes. "What is your name?" he asked, his own voice sounding foreign to him.

"B-Benjamin," the child hiccuped through his crying. "And my sister is Marie Anelle." Erik assumed that was the girl lying unconscious next to them. Looking at her more closely, he noticed the amount of blood pooling from her head and the severe bruises on her face. He wondered how Benjamin had gotten through the chaos relatively unharmed, while his sister was close to death. How close she was, he wasn't sure. But he knew she wasn't far.

Without allowing himself a second thought, he carefully scooped the unconscious girl into his arms, standing up while carrying her. "Follow me," he said to the boy. "I'm going to help you both. But you have to stay quiet. And don't look at the ground." He didn't know if the child was aware of how much death surrounded them, and didn't want to risk him panicking at the sight of the bodies.

With Benjamin following closely behind him, he carried the girl out of the room, bringing both of them towards his home.

 **(A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait! I didn't realize how busy I'd be over spring break, so I didn't have the chance to write anything. But I am back and dedicated to getting chapters up quickly! I'm thinking that I'll try to get a new chapter up every few days for a while, and then eventually slow down to one a week.**

 **Anyways, let me know what you think! Reviews are always appreciated)**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

As she crossed the line between unconsciousness and awareness, Anelle's first thought was that she had never experienced such a bizarre sleep before. The stiffness in her body identified that she had been asleep for a long time, but it felt like she had gotten absolutely no rest. Strange images had filled her head the whole time, making it seem like she had been in constant motion.

Before she even opened her eyes, the pain that encompassed her entire body was so severe that she couldn't think about anything else. Her flesh felt like it has been pressured into bruises in every conceivable place. Her skin felt hot and sensitive, like it was on fire. And there was a throbbing in her head so furious that she could hear it. It was intolerable; she didn't know how she could get through another second of it without screaming. But, strangely, she couldn't find her voice quickly enough to make any noise at all. After a few moments of having no other thought besides the pain, an inkling of memory began to resurface, and she remembered that she should be afraid.

She opened her eyes quickly, looking around at the unfamiliar space around her. The ground was solid stone, looking cold without even needing to touch it. The air seemed to be in the slightest of motion, like she was outside on a peaceful spring day. But of course that was ridiculous; they were clearly inside, there couldn't be a breeze. And the furniture that filled the space was elaborate and sleek, seeming so out of place.

One moment, she couldn't for the life of her recall how she had gotten there and what had happened before, and then the next moment, it hit her. The flood of memories crashed into her like a violent wave, knocking the breath out of her. The opera, the fire, her parents, Ben, the pain…

Ben.

Where was he? The last memory she could pull from her mind was throwing herself over him, attempting to protect his body from the stampede of people with hers. In her last memory, he had been there. So where was he?

She quickly sat up from where she was laying, instantly sending a jolt of pain through her entire body. It felt like she had reignited the flames that were engulfing her entire self. And this time, she could find her voice. She cried out involuntarily.

"She's awake!" a familiar voice called excitedly. Before she could even react to it, there was the sound of footsteps coming towards her. Two pairs of feet, if she was hearing right. One was fast and light, getting closer with each second that passed. The other was slow and deep, hanging back several feet away.

There wasn't any time to be concerned about who was approaching her before a small figure threw itself into her lap. It sent another rush of pain through her, but she couldn't feel it. She wasn't paying attention to that.

"Ben!" she cried in relief, holding tightly onto her little brother. She held him there for a few long seconds before pulling him back just slightly, looking over his body quickly, trying to find any sign of injury. "Are you okay?" she asked worriedly. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm not hurt," he insisted. "Don't worry, Erik saved me. Everything is okay now."

"Erik?" she asked, the name completely unfamiliar to her. "Who's Erik? Benjamin, what are you talking about? How did we get here?" By now, the urgency in her voice started to build as the fear in her did as well.

Ben didn't answer, just turning his head to the side and pointing in the direction of a man standing on the other side of the room, watching them intently.

The man was like no one she had ever seen before. He was more than just a stranger, he almost didn't seem human at all, like he didn't belong there.

He was dressed in black from head to toe, save his grey waist coat that buttoned around his thin figure. His height was towering, even from a distance she could tell. His dark hair was slicked back and, most prominently, there was a bone white mask covering one side of his face.

"Who are you?" she asked him, doing everything she could to not let her voice shake. She wanted answers, not to seem afraid and weak. "Where are we?"

"Benjamin, get off of her," was the only response his deep voice gave. "You'll worsen her injuries." Before he could move, Anelle tightened her grip on her brother, not wanting him any further away from her. She had no idea who this man was or what his intentions were. She couldn't know if he was going to hurt Ben.

"Who are you?" she demanded, her voice levels louder than it had been before, her eyes glaring sharply at the man.

"It's okay, Anelle," Ben assured her in his soft voice. "He's not going to hurt us. He saved us." Quickly, the girl's gaze turned into one of fury to one of curiousity.

"Why?" she asked him skeptically, her voice a bit quieter now, though still pointed with a threatening tone. The man didn't react as she had hoped. In fact, he didn't really react at all.

"Would you have rathered I let you die?" he asked simply. When seconds passed that she did not fill the silence with an answer, the man stepped forward.

"You must be careful," he told her. "You sustained a severe head injury and burns. I managed to stabilize your body, but if you aren't cautious then it will only get worse." The reminder triggered another spike of pain as her mind was once again focused on the sensation of fire on her skin.

As Ben slid off of her lap, sitting next to her instead, she opened her mouth to ask more questions. Before she could utter a word, though, the main cut her off.

"I know you have many questions," he said, raising his hand in front of him to stop her from speaking. "But I am not going to answer them, for the time being." This response made her furious, but she was too fragile to argue. "You will stay here as you heal," he continued. "I will take care of you, and your brother as well, and you will be grateful for that. With no questions asked." He must have seen the look in her eyes, because he added, "That is all," before turning and walking towards a table covered in vials and containers.

She was confused, frightened, and angry. She wanted answers. She wanted the pain to go away. She wanted her parents. She wanted Ben to be safe. She wanted to leave.

She didn't want to talk to the main- _Erik_ \- again, knowing that he wasn't going to answer. So instead, she turned to the only other one who might be able to give her some answers.

"Ben," she started. "How did we get here?"

His face lit up at the question, like he had been waiting to tell the story. "Erik took us away from the fire and down, down, down into the basement of the opera house." He told it as if it were an epic tale, too exciting for a bedtime story. "There were secret walls that we went through, because Erik knew where they were. And then we found a lake with a boat on it! And we rode it all the way until we were here." He finished, seeming satisfied with his answer. If she wasn't so afraid, she would have laughed at his animation.

His story sounded impossible. Walking through walls? A lake in the basement of the opera house? But, looking around at where they were, she realized that the strange answer seemed to fit the strange surroundings.

"How long have we been here?" she asked, not knowing how long she could have possibly been asleep for. It could have been hours or years, she just didn't know.

He scrunched up his face, clearly thinking. "About a day, I think. I went to sleep and woke up, so it was night time and now it's not. That means it's been a day," he informed her matter-of-factly, before continuing on answering a question that she didn't ask. "When we first got here Erik cleaned us both up. We were covered in ash and all sorts of stuff. It was in our eyes and our mouths. It stung, but Erik made it go away. Then he started helping you. He made your head stop bleeding-you were bleeding a lot- and he put some medicine on it and then wrapped it up.

He helped me next. He cleaned up my cuts and bruises, and then gave me water and dinner. I was really thirsty, so I drank a lot. After that, I felt a lot better. And Erik told me that you were going to be okay, that he just needed to keep putting medicine on your skin and head, so I could stop being scared for you."

She had so many more questions, but the exhaustion and pain that filled her body stopped her from asking. She knew that there was nothing she could do right then, so it was only a matter of waiting. She held tightly onto Ben, keeping him as close as possible. And as she wondered about her parents and if they were okay, she felt content with holding onto the thought that they had escaped the opera house and were out looking for them already.

 **(A/N: Hope you liked this chapter! Thank you to everyone who has followed this story so far. I can't wait to share it with you all. Please remember to review so I know what you're liking so far!**

 **Also, I might start looking for a beta to proofread the chapters before I post them, checking for spelling mistakes/typos/etc. So if you're interested, PM me!)**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The brilliant morning light that rose over the horizon the next morning was lost on the three who remained covered by the darkness of the deepest floor of the opera house. But it's effects were unnecessary, as Anelle woke up at just the time she always did, her body regulating itself back into her normal sleep pattern.

She was on a real bed now, instead of the couch she had slept on before. The mattress was a deep plush covered in soft velvet, so comfortable that it seemed out of place among the stone walls that surrounded them.

The soft, shallow breathing of the little boy asleep next to her was barely audible. It had been a mandatory condition of her's that Ben wasn't to be out of her sight, even while they slept. She needed to be in the best position to protect him if something went wrong at all times. She wouldn't let him be in danger again.

Only moments after waking did she become aware of the quiet sounds of music floating around the air. She knew the instrument well; an organ, a sound that she had always admired the most out of the entire orchestra pit. The sound was beautiful, but reminded her too much of the opera she had seen performed before it had disintegrated into the chaos that turned her world upside down.

She remained in bed for a while, not positive of what she was to do. With Ben asleep, she felt like she was alone with the strange masked man, a feeling she was still not comfortable with. Even when he had handed her a small vial of cloudy liquid that he said would help her sleep without pain the night before, she had done her best to avoid letting her hand touch the glove that covered his.

But, eventually, restlessness won over her cautiousness, and she could no longer stay still. She was so used to spending mornings outside in the garden with her mother, or in the sitting room reading with her father on the days the weather wasn't so pleasant. She just couldn't force herself to remain lying down for the remainder of the morning.

She moved carefully, both to keep herself from waking Ben, and to minimize the pain that any kind of motion sent through her body. She rolled her legs off the bed and stood up shakily. It hurt much more than she was anticipating and the second before she took a step, she wondered if she wasn't in as decent of a condition that she had thought.

The moment she took a step forward, she felt as if something snapped and resounded through her whole body. She fell to the floor and cried out in pain before she could even register what had happened. All that she knew was that her legs once again felt like they were on fire, though this time the flame was accompanied by a crushing weight that felt like it could splinter every bone it pressed on.

The music that was playing stopped abruptly, the sound of footsteps quickly approaching replacing it. She bit her lip to hold back the hot tears that were forming behind her eyes, from both pain and fear.

Erik helped her up wordlessly, supporting most of her weight for her.

"You mustn't move around without assistance," he chastised quietly. "Your body and muscles are worn from trauma, and your skin is burned to the point where it cannot withstand the pressure of walking."

"That's not true," she argued back without a thought. "I will be fine to walk as soon as I wake up a bit more. I just woke up too fast; that is why I fell." She was lying through her teeth and she knew it, but she would sooner lie than admit to him, or rather anyone for that matter, that she was helpless.

It took a good bit of his self control to push back the frustration she caused him. Why was she so stubborn when it was clear he was right?

"Whatever the cause," he said with forced calmness. "It would be best if you would make an effort to stay still while you heal a little more."

"I will not make you any promises," she said under her breath as he helped her over to a table, sitting her down in one of the chairs around it.

He ignored her remark as he went off for a bit, bringing over a plate of food and a glass of water moments later. He also placed a small capsule next to the plate.

"Take that after you eat," he instructed. He didn't need to explain that it was to help with her pain.

She picked up the glass of water silently, drinking most of it at once. She hadn't realized before how parched she was. When she put the glass down, she hesitated to eat, other more pressing thoughts racing through her mind.

"I have more questions," she said finally, looking directly at him for the first time. "And I want answers this time." He sat back quietly, looking at her with the same intensity.

"Very well," he agreed with some hesitancy. "You may ask whatever questions you have, but I hold the right to refuse to answer any of them that I choose." She wanted to argue that that wasn't fair, that she deserved all of the answers she needed, but decided that this was better than nothing, for now.

"Very well," she said, only a hint of mocking in her voice. "How did you find us? There were hundreds of people in the opera house. How did you come across us?"

"By the time I found you, there were only dozens left," he began. "And none of them were alive to tell. But what drew me to you was your brother. He was crying so loudly that I could hear him from all this way. I went to investigate, and you know the rest."

She nodded once, silently thanking him for complying and giving her an answer. But what he said only sent more questions through her head.

"If I was so badly hurt, how did Ben get out without any injury?" she asked. "If we were both in the same spot, how did we not both sustain the same wounds?" He didn't answer right away this time, instead taking a second to look at her curiously.

"You don't remember what you did?" he asked. "Don't you remember using your body to shield his? You were both on the ground, but you put your body over him, preventing him from being trampled or burned."

She thought hard for a moment, trying to pull back every memory she had of the event. "I suppose I do remember…" she said, still thinking. "Very vaguely, but it's there. I didn't think that it would make such a difference." She really hadn't. When she threw herself over Benjamin, she had only the hope that it would delay him from injury. She never thought that it would just about protect him entirely.

"Well, whatever it is that you remember, you can be assured that you saved your brother's life," the man said without any inflection that would give a hint towards an emotion.

She let the thought wander around her brain for a bit. It must have been true. If she was so close to death after the incident, then someone as small as Ben would surely have been killed. As soon as it came to her, she wanted nothing more than to get the idea out of her mind. Her little brother meant the world to her; she had watched him grow from an impossibly tiny baby to the rambunctious child he was. There was nothing she wouldn't do for him. If he had died…

No. She couldn't think like that, not now. Not when there was so much fear and uncertainty in her life. Ben was safe, and that was all that mattered for the moment.

"Is something the matter?" Erik asked in a rare moment of showing any sort of concern, noticing when her mind began to drift off to a dark place.

"No, nothing," Marie Anelle replied quickly, snapping her focus back to the present moment. "I have more questions," she stated, not asking, but letting him know that she was going to continue whether he liked it or not. She didn't get much of a response from him, just a short nod of his head.

"What happened on the stage that caused...the disaster?" She wasn't quite sure how to phrase it, but the question had been haunting her mind every waking moment.

A long moment passed with no acknowledgment that a question had even been asked. She was about to repeat herself, thinking that, for some reason, he hadn't heard her. But before she could, he shook his head just once.

"That is not a question I will answer for you," he said simply. She already knew that there was no use in arguing with him, so she continued with her next question.

"Why are you always wearing that mask?" She was surprised herself that such an odd behavior didn't capture her attention or bother her as much as it probably should have. But in any case, it was curious enough that she wanted to ask.

Again, there was a bit of hesitation from him, but this time it was clear he was thinking of a response to give her. "It is protecting you from something you wouldn't want to see." he said, though that wasn't much of an answer in her opinion.

"I don't think I understand," she said. "What do you mean?" But this only got a shake of his head in response. She sighed, frustrated, but decided that it should be easy enough to find out eventually.

"Why did you bother to save Benjamin and I?" she asked before she could convince herself not to. It was the one question that had plagued her mind the most. This man obviously was not social by any means, or even empathetic. He seemed very much like a person that could easily have left two strangers to die.

"I don't have an answer for you," he informed her. It wasn't just that he didn't want to answer her question, like she assumed, but he couldn't. He himself wasn't even sure why he had done it. Dozens of people had died and he didn't give a second thought about them; he didn't care. And yet with these two, he had made such an effort to keep them alive and safe. It was a mystery to him. One he hoped wouldn't have any consequences.

She realized that it wasn't likely she would get more answers from him at that time. They had both already exhausted their emotional energy on the conversation, and the morning had only just begun. So she made herself content with just letting the silence continue as she began to pick at the breakfast he had brought her.

A few minutes of only slightly less than comfortable quiet passed between them before a noise from a few feet away snapped them both out of their own dazes.

"Anelle!" Ben's small voice called happily as he ran up to her. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed the top of his head.

"Good morning, you tired boy." It was beyond rare at home for her brother to sleep for even five or six continuous hours without him interrupting himself by getting out of bed and running or playing. It was as if even sleeping wore out his attention span. But he had slept fully through the night and through a decent part of mid morning. Although it was unlike him, Anelle was glad he had slept; she was worried, of course, that all of the commotion was going to catch up with him eventually. At least if he was sleeping enough, exhaustion wouldn't be the cause.

"Do we get to stay here again today?" Ben asked to no one in particular, not really caring who gave him an answer.

"Yes," Erik said, without consulting Anelle. "You will both be staying here for quite a few day, until Marie Anelle is feeling better." This was one issue that he had already spent enough time avoiding having to think about. One part of him wanted nothing more than his solitude back, which would require sending them away as soon as possible. But another part of him knew that releasing them could be detrimental; there was no doubt that they would tell someone that he was still living in the Populaire, not dead as was presumed. And if the world knew that, he would never be safe again.

"Really?" Ben exclaimed excitedly. Erik looked at his positive reaction, if only to avoid looking over to Anelle, who he knew wouldn't feel quite the same as her brother did. He stood up, going off to get the little boy some breakfast, still keeping his eyes away from Anelle.

Before he even could set the plate in front of him, Ben was talking a mile a minute, not even seeming to stop to breathe at any point. It was almost impressive, the rate at which his brain could come up with words, even if most of them were complete nonsense.

Anelle and Erik sat in half content silence as he continued talking, at least somewhat grateful to have a distraction from their past conversation.

 **(A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading and following this story. I have been so happy getting to come back to writing for this fandom, so it's really encouraging to see that people are reading. I would really appreciate some feedback so I know what you guys are liking so far, and what you want to see in the future of this story!**

 **Also, a SUPER special thank you to sassinesswithglitter, who is the new beta for this story! She has a few stories of her own, so make sure to check her out!)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

There was almost a sense of normalcy as Anelle sat, curled up on the couch, watching Ben as he played with a few small trinkets that Erik had given him to entertain himself earlier that day. There weren't any figures or characters that she recognized, just small wooden people with no discernible identities. They looked handmade, which just made them more beautiful.

Of course, if she paid attention to anything else around them, it was nothing like the normal she had known before. Most noticeably, the sound of the organ that seemed to constantly be playing in the background was as present as ever. Despite wanting to be annoyed by it, she had to admit to herself that she had never heard any music quite so alluring.

"Anelle," a small voice broke her thoughts. Ben had stopped playing with the figures for a moment to tug on the skirt of her dress. "Will you come play with me? Please?" She couldn't say no to the big pleading eyes he was flashing at her. Besides, what better things did she have to do?

"Of course I will," she said with a small smile, ruffling his hair playfully before carefully moving herself from the couch to the floor. The pain in her body hadn't subsided since her initial fall, but she was starting to figure out how to make small movements without flaring it up too badly.

Before long, the siblings were both consumed in an imaginary game, where Ben's mismatched figures were an army coming to rescue Anelle's hopelessly captured princess. It was easy to forget the real world when playing make-believe with someone as fully committed to it as Ben.

At some point the sound of the organ stopped, though neither of the two on the floor noticed right away. Erik walked silently over to where Marie Anelle and Benjamin had been before he started on his organ, where he assumed they still were.

Indeed they were in relatively the same spot, though Marie Anelle had moved from the couch onto the floor, seemingly so she could play with the child. He watched them for a few moments, making a note to himself to find something else for Anelle to entertain herself with, so she wouldn't be reduced to playing pretend with a five year old. Though, she didn't seem to mind it. He watched as her long dark hair swayed with her laughter, and her delicate hands moved the pieces with animation. Her goal seemed to be nothing other than to make her brother enjoy the game.

He cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the two on the floor. "May I speak with you both?" he said, clearly not really asking for permission. He was going to talk either way. Anelle nodded her head, placing down the figurines and turning to face him more completely. Ben, watching her closely, did the same.

"As we are on the third day of you staying here," Erik began. "It seems time that we discuss rules that I expect to be followed for the rest of your visit."

Anelle wasn't sure what to think. After all, she didn't want to be there in the first place, never mind have restrictions set upon her. If he was going to be picky about their behavior, he should just let them go. But it wasn't the time to argue, she knew that. So she silently resided herself to the fact that she would listen to see what he had to say, and know that she wasn't going to promise anything.

"First," he said, not looking for a response from either of them. "Neither of you are to ever leave this place without my permission. For the time being, no one can know that you are here with me, so being seen outside is not an option for the moment."

"We can't stay unknown for long," Anelle spoke up. "We have family that will be looking for us. Our parents and brother will be worried. Eventually they are going to search for us here."

Erik grew quiet. He had a response in his mind, but he couldn't give it, not now. Not yet. "We can discuss that at a later time," he promised, deciding that would have to be good enough for the time being.

"Next," he continued. "I ask that you do not pry through my home. I will tell you where you can and cannot go, what you can and cannot touch." It was a reasonable enough request, though Anelle didn't point out to him that telling a five year old boy where he couldn't go and what he couldn't play with was not going to be as easy as he thought.

"In addition, since you will most likely be here for an extended period of time, I will be finding books for the both of you so you may continue your schooling. I will not let two more uneducated people loose on in this world."

"I've finished school," Anelle informed him. "I'm eighteen, I don't have any more lessons." She had gone to her a local girls' school all her life, and had finished out her education there months ago. There wasn't any more curriculum for her to go through.

"Then I will find you some," Erik said back, not in the mood for a discussion. "There is no risk in being too educated.

"Lastly," he went on, leaving no room for any more argument. "My space is to be respected. No one is to disturb me while I am doing my work, either at the table or with my instrument.

"That, for now, is the end," he said, earning a small sigh of relief from Anelle, who had begun to worry about how long the list would go. "However, I may come up with additions when issues arise. Now, I am going to work on sending out for living supplies for both of you." That, at least, was one relief. Anelle didn't know how much longer she could have standed being in the same dress.

"You may go back to your game," he said, before turning and walking off. A few moments of silence followed before Benjamin leapt back into their make believe plot like nothing had disturbed them.

Erik walked over to a table on the far side of his home, where he could have the most quiet. He pulled out a parchment, pen, and ink. He needed to write a letter in order to gain access to the supplies he needed, without having to leave the confines of his home.

He knew the home address of his oldest friend, and would find some way to send it to her. Despite everything, he knew that she would not abandon him now.

 _Dear Madame Giry,_

 _I am writing to you with the intention of updating you on the current status of my situation, and to ask for your help if you can find it in your heart to give it to me. As you may have guessed, I am not dead, as the reports would like you to believe. I am still here, in my home at the Populaire. And though in poor spirits, I find myself in good health._

 _There has been one change, I must add, since you and the rest have gone. I seem to have brought in two visitors to my home. They were injured in the disaster, so I have been caring for them to prevent them from meeting the same fate as many others. Though, I realize now, that letting them go after they are in better health may not be the best plan. No doubt, they would be questioned about where they were for all this time, and I cannot having anything leading the population back to the opera house._

 _And so, while I decide how to best deal with the situation at hand, I ask for your help. I have little access to living supplies for myself as it is. And now, with two more people, I do not know how much longer I can go without finding a new source. I ask you to find a way to bring the amount of food necessary to keep three people sustained for the time being. In addition, the two are in need of clothing. One is a small boy, close to five years old. I assume he is the average size for his age. The other, his sister, is eighteen and not far off from the size of your Meg. I will, of course, pay you for all the supplies, and more, for your troubles._

 _My dearest friend, I know that existing with me has not been the most rewarding task as of late, but I do rely on your help. I pray that our bond has not been broken by recent events._

 _Yours,_

 _OG_

He read the note over and over, making sure that everything was worded perfectly. He didn't even notice Anelle approaching him until she was only a few feet away.

He looked up when he saw her out of the corner of his eye. Even then it was obvious that she was limping heavily. She could barely keep herself upright, supporting herself on everything she walked past.

He bolted up, closing the space between them in a second and moving his arms to support her. He could practically feel the relief she felt when she no longer had to hold all of her weight on her weak legs. He carefully led her over to the chair across from where he had just been sitting.

"I told you not to move around without assistance," he chastised, his voice quiet but sharp. She was never going to heal if she didn't stop being so stubborn. Why wouldn't she just listen to him?

She didn't respond to him, just about ignoring him altogether. Instead, after getting her breath back to try to keep any trace of pain off of her face, she changed the topic.

"What is it that you expect from my family?" she demanded, glaring at him fiercely. "They are not going to just accept that Ben and I are missing and move on without a thought. They will be looking for us. They will look everywhere they possibly can. And, eventually, they are going to search the opera house." It made no sense in her mind why he wouldn't just release them back to their parents. There was nothing he could do to help her get better that her parents couldn't.

The silence that filled the air was painfully extended. With every second that passed that Erik didn't respond, the dread in her stomach grew.

"A few days ago, when the….event… took place, every injured person was taken out of the opera house to receive the medical attention they needed. All but you and Benjamin, of course. The dead were left until the next day. While you were sleeping, the bodies were removed. After they were identified, the evening newspaper released a list of the deceased." He had to stop himself there, at least for the moment. He knew what he had to say, and he thought that she might know as well, no matter how much she didn't want to believe it.

"Both of your parents were on the list." He couldn't stop now, he had to tell her the rest. "You and your brother are on it, too. There was a note about how your bodies were not recovered, but it is assumed that they were trampled or burned beyond recognition.

He expected her to burst into tears immediately. He prepared himself for the violent sobs that would be consuming her body any moment. But… it didn't happen.

Anelle stared blankly forward, her eyes only glossing over with tears that didn't fall.

"I see," she said, her voice shaking just a bit.

He sighed. "I apologize for your loss," he said, know that was what people should say when faced with this type of situation. "But I feel I must remind you that now it is in the best interest of you and Benjamin to stay here with me, at least for the time being, seeing as how you don't yet have a home to go back to."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The rest of the day went past quietly without another event. There was nothing Anelle could do to expel the thought of her parents out of her mind, and nothing Erik could say to make up for her loss. So they went through the following hours in almost a cloud of worries, both trying to avoid the reality of the situation.

Anelle sat on the floor with Ben, playing the mindless games he seemed to somehow always engage himself in. Typically, sitting through even more of these continuous hours of child's play with him would have been intolerable, but the mindlessness of it all was actually the best thing for her at the moment.

Erik occupied himself as he always did; writing and playing on his organ, though he was always half-listening to Anelle and Benjamin, making sure they did not need anything. In particular, he was waiting to make sure Anelle wouldn't try to walk around without assistance. He couldn't understand why she was being so impossibly stubborn about insisting she did not need help, even when she was clearly experiencing excruciating pain, and knew that she was only inflicting further damage on herself.

The mood that cast itself over the entire space was one that hadn't been there in days. There was an absolute misery that hung around them, the kind that hurt to even breathe in. It was not so unlike the kind he had experienced following the departure of Christine.

 _Christine._

He hadn't dared to even think that name since the fateful night. Despite the disarray and frustration watching after Marie Anelle and Benjamin caused, they served as almost the perfect distraction. It was easy to keep his mind busy when he had the health of others to think about. He wondered if that was the real reason he had ultimately decided to keep them there with him; because he couldn't stand the thought of being left alone again. Nothing could be worse than being trapped in isolation with his thoughts.

He was dangerously close to breaking down when he heard Anelle's soft voice raise slightly.

"Come on, it's time to go to bed," she said, the kindness in her voice very obviously showing that she was speaking to her brother.

"But I'm not," the argument was interrupted by a gentle yawn. "Even tired yet." Anelle laughed under her breath.

"I know, but it's late and you need to rest." In reality, she actually had no idea what time it was; there was no way to tell. But the day had already been so long, and even she was beginning to feel her body craving sleep. "Go get yourself ready, and I'll meet you in bed."

Erik didn't wait for a request, since he knew it wasn't likely for one to come, before standing up from where he was reading and walking over to Anelle. He wordlessly offered out a hand, and she took it without arguing. For a moment he thought that maybe she had finally accepted that he was right, but quickly realized that her mind was just too occupied with other thoughts to start a battle.

He helped her over to the bed, staying very close until she was sitting comfortably. She didn't say a word, or even look up at him.

"Do you need-" he began to ask.

"No," she interrupted, her voice quiet but sharp. "I don't need anything."

He had seen so much suffering and pain in his life, more than anyone he could ever imagine. But little of it compared to the look of resigned anguish that was on her face. There was no hidding the grief and burden that was consuming her. It was rare that he felt the need to help anyone, but seeing her in that moment sparked a moment of sympathy that he didn't know he still possessed. But there was nothing else he could do or say in that moment, and he knew quite well that she found no comfort in him being there, so he turned and walked back over to his chair. He picked up the book he had been reading before, but kept his attention on listening to the two siblings.

It was only a minute before Ben jumped onto the bed, his black hair ruffled messily from his quick movements; nothing Ben ever did was slow or thoughtful, he was completely consumed by impulsivity and the need for everything to happen _now_.

Anelle scooped the little boy onto her lap, his head resting on her leg. It brought comfort to both of them as they stayed silently in that position, Anelle stroking his hair absentmindedly.

"You know how much I love you, don't you Ben?" she asked, breaking the silence in the air. She would have given anything to just let them continue through the night without speaking, but she knew she couldn't. She knew that there was a conversation that they needed to have, no matter how much she was dreading it.

"Yes, I know," he responded in a sleepy voice, his eyes barely open.

"And you know that I will protect you from everything in the whole world," she continued. "And that I will take care of you and make sure that you are always safe and happy." Her voice cut off for a moment as she tried to fight off the tears that she could feel burning her eyes and straining her throat.

"Do you remember seeing the people who weren't alive anymore before Erik found us?" she asked, hoping that, at the very least, she wasn't stirring up traumatic images in his head that would haunt his sleep.

"Yes," he said again, not any fear in his voice, as if it was any old memory.

"And do you remember what we are told happens to people when they aren't alive anymore?" She wanted to back out of the whole conversation, to stop now and avoid having to give any more unhappiness to him. But there was no way to avoid telling him; he had to know eventually, and it would only get harder the more time passed.

"They to go heaven," he told her, like he was informing her with something very important. "to wait for the rest of the people they love." A tear fell down her cheek, stinging her skin all the way down the trail it created.

"That's right," she told him. "They go to heaven where they are happy, and healthy, and safe. Where they can watch over their loved ones forever." Ben looked up at her, confusion dotting his face as he wondered why she was crying. He had never seen her cry before, not ever. He couldn't imagine something so upsetting that it would make her cry.

Anelle took a breath, trying to steady her shaking voice. "Before Erik found us, mother and father were hurt very badly," she told him. She wanted to look at him as she said this, but she couldn't; she couldn't bear to look at him. "They were so hurt that their bodies couldn't hold onto their lives any longer. So they went to heaven, and that's where they are now. They are watching us from up there, instead of from earth like they did before."

She ran out of the strength that had kept her from crying, and tears began to flow freely down her face. She couldn't think of anything to make herself calm down; she doubted anything that could do that existed. She was consumed by grief and fear.

There was some confusion on Benjamin's face; there was no way for him to truly understand the situation at such a young age. He remembered learning about heaven, and it was always described as such a happy place. So he couldn't understand why Anelle was so upset. If their parents were there, wouldn't that mean that they were happy? He understood that he missed them, even just being separated from them for three days, but if they were watching over them, and if he still had Anelle, and now they both had Erik, then that must mean that everything would be okay

 **(A/N: I would just like to give another big thank you to everyone who has been reading, following, and reviewing this story. It means so much to me to see people enjoying it. Things are about to start picking up, so make sure to stay tuned!**

 **Also, everyone should go check out the story 'Down Once More' by AliceHeart247. It is an absolutely incredible Phantom fic that doesn't get nearly as much love as it deserves.**

 **Remember to review!)**


	7. Chapter 7

**(A/N: I am SO sorry for the late update. Things have been so hectic around here with finals and all that. But luckily, after tomorrow, I will be completely done with school for the year, so I will have plenty of time to write chapters. Enjoy!)**

Chapter 7

Morning came before Anelle even noticed that the night had past. She couldn't remember falling asleep, but she must have at some point. When she opened her eyes, they were burning from exhaustion and the amount of tears that had escaped throughout the night.

Almost immediately after she came to consciousness, before she had even started moving, Erik made his way across the room and to her side, offering out his hand to help her up.

"Don't bother," she mumbled, not in any sort of mood to be near him and his rigidness. "I will do it myself." In her mind, he was supposed to have moved out of her way after that statement, and let her get herself

out of the bed. But instead, he remained standing there as if she hadn't said anything at all.

"I will not let you worsen your injuries simply because you refuse to listen to me," he said evenly when she still did not take his hand.

"I said go away," she snapped, not at all enjoying his all-knowing tone that he seemed to love carrying around with her.

Before he could respond, the small figure on the other side of the bed started to stir. Within a moment, Ben's head popped up from under the covers, his black hair in complete disarray.

"Good morning," Anelle greeted, doing her best to bring her voice back down so it didn't sound like she was angry with him. He shifted over so he was right next to her, and she kissed the top of his head.

"Good morning, Anelle." He let out a small yawn. "Good morning, Erik," he said, clearly not thinking anything out of the ordinary of him standing directly next to their bed. "Can I go play?" he asked neither of them in particular.

"Of course you can," Anelle responded, the thought of waiting for Erik's response not even crossing her mind. The boy ran off excitedly, his energy completely refueled by the night of sleep.

Once he was gone, Anelle moved uncertainly to get her legs onto the ground, struggling even with that. Erik leaned down closer to her, lowering his tone enough that only she could hear. "You can either accept my assistance," he began, his voice sounding much different so close to her ears. "Or you can let your brother see you fall, which will no doubt only increase the worry he is experiencing." He had her there. He had only known her for four days, and already he knew exactly how to shape her actions. There was nothing she wouldn't do to protect her brother, including from emotional pain, and he knew that.

"Fine," she agreed sharply. She took his hand and let him help her to her feet. He brought her over to a chair by a shelf of odd jars and containers, making sure to move slowly enough that she wasn't straining to keep up with him; her short stature left her at least a full foot below him, so the difference in the lengths of their strides was something he had to adjust himself to.

"I think it would be best if I take a look at your injuries, particularly the burns on your legs," he said once she was sitting down. "May I?" In any other circumstance, he wouldn't have even thought to ask it of her. But her burns had been so bad when he first found her that he couldn't even check her for more injuries at the time. He knew it was important to make sure that the burns were healing, as well as check for any other problems.

She wasn't quite sure how to respond at first. Initially, she thought of how it wouldn't be proper to have him looking at or touching her at all, even if it was just to examine her injuries; it was just what she was always taught growing up. But as she thought about it, she realized that there was no point in worrying about proprieties any more, since there was no one around to appease. Besides, if she couldn't see a doctor, Erik would have to be the next best thing. The last thing she wanted was to become ill with some kind of infection and have to spend her last days down in the basement of the opera house.

"Okay," she agreed, trying not to appear like she thought anything of it. She moved the skirt of her dress-which, by now, she was very tired of wearing. She hoped that they would find some way to bring in new clothes soon- up a bit and to the side, exposing her legs to the point just past her knees. She looked down at them quickly, something she hadn't dared to do in days. Her skin was completely covered in angry looking burns and cuts, her flesh opened and exposed in multiple places. She looked away quickly, not wanting to even think about how terrible it looked, never mind felt.

Erik did his examination silently, both of them avoiding any kind of eye contact quite determinedly. "Hmm," he observed after a few minutes. "Your burns are not healing quite right. There is too much irritation, and the level of injury extends fairly deep." He looked for another few moments. "There is some swelling right here… I'm going to apply a bit of pressure. Tell me what kind of pain you feel." Before she could argue against him, he pressed his thumb midway down her leg.

Instantly her reflexes tried to pull back from the source of the pain, and she had to bite her lip to prevent herself from shouting out. "What do you mean 'what kind of pain'?" she demanded, almost dumbfounded that he would press down where he already knew she was injured. "It was pain! You didn't know that before?"

He had to force back a smirk at her reaction; he found a kind of amusement in the way she spoke to him. After years of nobody daring to speak out of turn to him, it was almost baffling to experience someone unafraid to speak their mind around him. Especially someone with a temper like Marie Anelle's.

"Was it a burning pain, a heavy pressure pain, a sharp pain…?" he prompted, still looking for some kind of answer from her.

"A sharp pain," she concluded after a moment of thought. "Like a knife was being pushed against it."

He nodded, looking back down at the area once more. "I suspect you have a fractured shin," he told her. "It's nothing too serious, but you will need to take special care to not irritate it while it heals. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand," she replied a bit impatiently. He spoke as if she didn't know what he was talking about, like she didn't know what a fracture was or how to let it heal.

He sensed her irritation, which only set him on edge as well. But he held his tongue, not doubting for a second that she wouldn't hesitate to get into a battle with him. And a fight was not something that either of them needed.

"I'm going to put some salve on the burns, and then wrap the broken leg," he told her, already moving to the shelves to get what he needed. She watched as he mixed together the contents of different jars into a smaller one, wondering how he could possibly know what he was doing.

Within moments, he was next to her again. He scooped a bit of the salve onto his fingers and carefully applied it to her burned skin.

He wondered how much pain she was really in; if the looks of the burns were anything to go by, he suspected it must be a tremendous amount. And yet she hardly ever showed signs of discomfort, and she certainly never complained to him about it. It was hard to understand how she could stand it all the time.

Minutes passed in silence as he gently tended to her. Anelle couldn't recall him being this careful around her before. It almost seemed against his nature, to be so careful. As she had watched him over the past four days, she found that everything he did, every movement he made, was so sure, like he never feared a misstep. The way he walked, spoke, even wrote, all gave off the appearance of complete positivity in his abilities.

"How do you know all of this?" she asked when he took out the dressing to wrap her leg with. "About bodies and medicine, I mean."

"Oh, I've studied many different things in many different places," he answered vaguely. It was hardly an answer at all, much like the responses any of her questions to him were met with. "Anatomy and medicine among them. They are just subjects that I happened to pick up."

He finished off the wrap with a knot, guaranteeing that it wouldn't fall off on it's own. Her leg was contained so tightly that it was just about held completely stiff. She inwardly groaned at how long it was going to take to adjust moving in it.

"As long as you are careful, the fracture should be healed soon," he said as he started to put away everything he hadn't used.

"Thank you," she said, watching him curiously. For some reason, his movements had become intriguing to her. They weren't much like a human's at all, much more like a cat or something of that nature, with his swiftness and certainty.

Once he was finished cleaning up, he helped her up out of the chair and over to the couch near where Ben was playing.

"Anelle!" the boy shouted excitedly when he saw the two approaching. "Can you play with me now?" Impatience edged in his voice; clearly he felt like he had been waiting ages for his sister to be ready.

"Okay, okay," Anelle answered with a soft laugh. She put her hand on the back of the couch to support herself as she took a step over to him.

"No," Erik stopped her quickly, putting a hand on her shoulder to keep her from moving forward any more. "I told you, you must not put any more pressure on your leg. It isn't going to heal properly if you spend all day playing." She opened her mouth to argue, but he continued before she could even get a word out. "Ben, Marie Anelle cannot play with you today. She must rest."

Anelle wasn't given time to warn Erik of the consequences of what he said. Ben's eyes grew large and shiny with tears as his lower lip pouted out.

"He is a five year old boy," Anelle said pointedly to Erik. "He can't simply entertain himself all day every day. He needs to get his energy out and play with others."

"Why?" Erik asked, really not understanding. How could playing with others be so important to anyone?

She looked at him incredulously. "How is it that you don't know anything at all about children?" she asked.

"I've never needed to," he reasoned cooly, brushing her statement off. "You simply cannot put strain on your body right now, so my answer is final."

"Erik," Ben's little voice pipped up. "Will you play with me?" He looked at the man who towered over him with a look of utter helplessness.

He was taken aback by the question. It still baffled him how a child so small could not be terrified by him, and now he wanted him to play? Did he have no clue as to how dangerous and terrible he was? Was this child equally unafraid of the monsters under his bed?

But looking down at the innocent, small boy, he could not find it in himself to disappoint him further. "Very well," he agreed, no shortage of reluctance in his voice. Immediately, the pout on Ben's face was replaced with a beaming smile.

Ben took off in an excited, skipping run, Erik following awkwardly behind. Within seconds Ben was engaged in a full blown imaginary scenario, one that Erik struggled to keep up with. It took everything in him not to point out the plot inconsistencies and poor characterization that the boy created.

Anelle watched them curiously, noticing how Erik actually appeared to be making some effort with Ben, despite how uncomfortable he clearly was. After a minute she turned her attention to a book that was resting on the stand next to where she was sitting. She picked it up without bothering to read the cover or even skim through the pages, desperate for any sort of entertainment that wasn't playing pretend with her brother. She noticed too late, however, that this was not a novel of any kind. It was a book of sheet music, seeming to be the printed and published version of an old opera. There were no other books within reaching distance and, by looking at Erik practically being forced to participate in Ben's silly game, she could see that she couldn't ask him to help her over to the shelves to pick out a new one. So she flipped to the first page of the opera and began reading, taking in the lyrics as a story. She could read music as well, but she was far too tired to focus on translating the notes into sounds in her head.

Before long, she was lost in the opera. Even though she wasn't trying to look at them, seeing the music staff with it's notes drifting up and down it brought her mind back to a different time. Warm summer afternoons spent in the parlor, all of the windows open to let in the cool breeze that made the curtains fly up like ghosts. Her whole family-her parents, Ben, Oliver, and even his fiancee Helene, this past year- would lounge around on the furniture in their light summer clothes, talking, laughing, and playing music.

It wasn't a surprise that her parents, being so enthralled and dedicated to the opera house, were adamant about their children learning at least one performance skill. Oliver had the singing voice of a crow, so he had chosen the flute. Helene was a beautiful dancer. Ben was so young that he was still in the stage of learning the basics of music; how to read and understand it. And for Anelle, the violin had always been her choice.

She had a decent singing voice-a hundred time better than Oliver, though she didn't consider that much of an accomplishment-but it never interested her enough to pursue. Singing had always just seemed so passive; there was nothing exciting about it, nothing that made her crazy with dedication. But everything about the violin called to her. It started by watching her mother, who had played the instrument since she was a child. The movements had always looked so delicate and graceful, it was as beautiful as dancing. So, ever since she was six years old, Anelle had practiced violin like it was the one thing keeping her afloat in an angry sea of waves.

Anelle would have been content to just stay in her daydream for hours, remembering all of the wonderful times she had with her family and their music. But far too soon, the sound of a sharp cry broke her out of the spell. It was so clearly Ben.

Her head snapped up, looking around frantically for where the sound came from. This was not a cry of excitement, or even part of his pretend game. No, she knew this sound; it was real, and he sounded hurt.

After a few seconds of desperately looking around for where he was, she saw him across the other side of the space. Without thinking, she jumped up from where she was sitting and did her best to run over to him, limping and ignoring any pain.

Ben was on the ground, his knee bleeding from the fall he must have taken. It wasn't a dangerous injury, but he was clearly in distress from the fall he must have taken. She instinctively began to move close to him, the need to comfort him immediate and costuming. But before she could reach him, Erik stepped in front of her, putting his hand out on her shoulder to stop her from moving forward any more. She looked up at his face; she was surprised to see that he seemed visibly shaken by Ben falling and his reaction. This might have been the reason he snapped so sharply at her.

"What do you think you're doing?" he demanded, his voice pushing forth much more anger than he had meant it to. "Do you not know how to listen? Are you an idiot? I told you not to move!"

His tone did nothing to intimidate Anelle, it only fueled her own anger. "You can't stop me from moving around," she snapped back. "Especially not when it comes to making sure Ben is okay!" Behind her glare was a fire so strong that it wasn't unreasonable to assume she could burn him. "If _you_ had let me play with him in the first place, he wouldn't have gotten hurt!" Despite her better judgement, she pushed past the tall, slightly shocked, man, and tried to close the space between her and her brother.

But Erik could move faster, and he did. He scooped the still sniffling child up off the ground himself, if only to prevent from Anelle from being able to. The flame behind her eyes grew, spreading until it felt like it was consume every part of her. He was not going to just get away with keeping her from Ben.

She took a step towards him, not even knowing what she intended to do when she reached them, just knowing she was going to do something. But before she could even finish the step, as her foot hit the ground, she felt something in her leg move the wrong way. It was a _very_ wrong way. She fell involuntarily with a yell of pain, bracing herself against the ground once she was on it. Erik moved quickly to help her up, but was stopped in his tracks.

"Leave me alone!" she demanded the second she saw him move.

"I have to check your leg," he insisted. It was taking every bit of his power to keep his voice even instead of escalating the anger by yelling. "Or, at least get you over to somewhere you can sit."

"No, I don't want your help!" she continued, not relenting in the slightest. "I don't need your help!" He couldn't trust himself to keep his temper any longer. Without another word, he stormed off, Ben still in his arms, leaving Anelle on the ground, shaking with anger.

 **(A/N: Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it. Get ready, guys. This story is about to pick up. Remember to review!)**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Almost two full days had past since Anelle had spoken a word. After her fight with Erik she had withdrawn herself, staying in her bed, refusing food and water. There wasn't a chance that she would listen to Erik about anything now, so he had tried to use Ben to convince her, telling him what to say to her in order to convince her to snap out of whatever mood she was in. But even that hadn't worked; it seemed she was determined to shut everyone and everything out.

Erik knew that he should have been concerned; if she went without food or water for much longer, she was going to get very sick. However, he was still too furious with her. With everything he had done for them, she dared to be mad at him? All he had done was keep her from injuring herself further, and yet she still found fault in it?

If she refused to eat and ended up dying, then it would be just as well; it wasn't as if anyone would miss her, since she was already pronounced dead. Even Ben was young enough that, with time, he would barely remember.

But...no, he couldn't. He couldn't just let her die from her own stubbornness. There was something about her-perhaps it was her fire, her willingness to stand up to him like no one had ever dared to, her dedication to caring for Ben, or maybe just her insufferable charm-that made it impossible for him to just let her seal her own fate in this way. After all, he had done so much already to keep her alive and well, he couldn't let her ridiculous choices lead to her own demise.

On the subject of Ben, Erik could no longer deny that he had begun feeling some kind of fondness towards him. He had never once interacted with a child up close before in his life, so he had assumed that he had nothing but ill feelings towards them. But Ben's ever present positivity and curiosity was endlessly fascinating to him. There hadn't been a moment yet that the boy had shown any signs of negative feelings, at least not since Erik had found him almost a week before.

And yet the one thing that struck him the most about the child was that he never showed any fear towards Erik at all. He had always thought that he struck fear into the hearts of everyone with the misfortune of coming across him, but here was this boy who had been through so much in the past days and had every reason to be paralyzed with fear, and yet all he did was trust Erik completely.

As the former Phantom dwelled on the situation that he never would have dreamed himself getting into, Anelle's mind raced faster than she could process.

In the past day, almost all of her anger had drifted into pure fear. A world without her parents was not something she had ever imagined herself living in. In all thoughts of her future, her parents were always a constant presence. There was still a part of her that didn't believe it was true even now.

What she was going to do next was a terrifying question which she hadn't found the answer to yet. Anyone who had ever known her thought that she was dead, she had no home to go back to, and she was the only one responsible for herself and Ben now. They couldn't stay with Erik forever; every day it seemed closer and closer to the moment he would throw them out. She didn't know why he hadn't already.

All of this fear, doubt, and confusion had been building inside of her since the day she had woken up in Erik's home. Her injury was just the thing that pushed her over the edge from calmness into spiraling fear and anger. Her independence had always held a great importance to her; she had never done well with suffocating rules and obligations. But now, unable to even walk on her own, never mind control her parents' death, where she was staying, or what happened next in her life, she felt like she was drowning. Being trapped in the opera house was like being stuck in the circle that had ruined her life.

She was so deep in her own thought that when Ben jumped into the bed beside her, she jolted in surprise.

"Are you feeling any better?" he asked as he climbed closer to her. Erik hadn't been able to explain to him what was wrong with his sister, so he had told him that she was just a bit sick and that's why she was staying in bed.

"I'm okay," she told him, forcing a half smile and she tucked a piece of his wild hair behind his ear. "Don't worry."

With his blind trust, he seemed to believe her. He easily jumped into a new conversation, his words as joyful as ever. "Me and Erik found a lot of books and stacked them into a tower!" he told her. "It was taller than me, and almost as tall as him! It fell over before we could make it bigger, but he said that we can try again later." It was almost impossible for Anelle to picture the same Erik that she was constantly battling with being so kind to Ben. It was as if they knew two different people. In any case, she was glad that he was good to her brother.

"Why haven't you been eating or drinking?" he asked, his head tilting just slightly in curiosity. His focus was back on her, which she did not want at all.

She hesitated for a moment before answering, wishing he was less observant. "I'm just too tired," she said, hoping that would be enough of an answer for him.

"Then why don't you go to sleep?" he asked, as if it were the simplest solution in the world.

"It...it isn't that kind of tired," she tried to explain to him. She didn't want to lie; his trust in her was something she would protect forever. So she had to think of ways to explain things to him so that he would understand. "It's a tired that I feel on the inside. The kind of tired that is in my brain and my heart."

He was quiet for a few seconds, clearly deep in thought. "When I feel sad like that, I try to think of something very happy. Like the picnics we take in the spring, and playing in the snow when it's close to Christmas. And when I am too sad for that to work, I go to you. When you hold me it always makes me feel better."

Anelle had to fight back the tears that were pricking her eyes, just thinking that he came to her when he was upset and trusted that she could make him feel better. She wanted to find the right words to tell him that he should always come to her when he was upset, because it helped her feel better too. But before she could speak, he wrapped his arms gently around her neck and kissed the side of her head.

From a few feet away, hidden out of sight behind a bookcase, Erik watched the scene between the two. He felt just a pang of pity for Anelle, listening to how she was suffering. The pity stemmed mostly from how he could so closely relate to her words. The exhaustion in her soul that she described was precisely how he had felt, especially since she had left. Despite not showing any of this to Anelle or Ben, his nights were wracked with crippling thoughts of her. A part of his soul was lost, and he could never gain it back.

It occurred to him then that perhaps Anelle was not only upset about her parents death and her own injuries, but she might also be lonely. The only person she felt she could talk talk to was her little brother, who was too young to even really talk to because of his age. Loneliness was certainly something that he could relate to. He decided then that he did, in fact, pity her.

He walked over to the bed the two were laying in, a glass of water in his hand. He cleared his throat to get their attention.

"It's getting late," he said, doing his best to keep his voice neutral so she wouldn't know he had been listening. "It would be best if you both start settling down for a rest." He handed Anelle the glass of water without a word, knowing that she needed to drink, and that she knew it too.

She hesitated for a moment, looking up at him with an emotion so mixed that he couldn't understand what it was, before taking a sip of the water. He nodded slightly, a silent 'thank you', before walking away.

As they settled into sleep, he immediately began working on a new project on the other side of the space, far from where they could see or hear.

xXxXxXx

Anelle woke early the next morning, even before Ben who was usually up and awake before any kind of reasonable hour. As she sat up slowly, stretching her arms out, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. She turned quickly, hyper-aware of any sort of changes.

Next to the bed there was an odd looking chair that certainly hadn't been there before. In the place of where it's legs should be, there were four wheels-two small ones in the front, and two larger ones in the back. Along with the wheels, there were other small mechanisms attached that she couldn't begin to guess what they could be for.

Laying on the seat of the chair was a note written on a piece of paper. She picked it up and read:

Marie Anelle,

I thought you might be interested in trying this chair. It will help you get around on your own without having to use your legs. If you wish, you may use it while you heal.

I can make any adjustments needed when you awaken.

~Erik

(A/N: I feel like I am always apologizing for updates taking so long, but I really am sorry! I've had some health related issues this past month that have had me in and out of the hospital, so I haven't had much internet time. I pinky promise that I'm going to try to get back into a more regular posting schedule.

There have been a few new followers to this story since the last chapter went up, so welcome to all of you, and thank you for reading!

As always, thank you to my amazing beta, sassinesswithglitter, for putting up with my inconsistent schedule and helping out so much with this story!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Remember to review to let me know what you like and what you want to read in the upcoming chapters!)


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